I've delayed making this post for too long; you could consider this a continuation of my Shellwood+Nyleth post, forming the fae-witch-hag trifecta alongside Sister Splinter
Before I start, here's a pretty good video that covers well the basics
But I want to get into more detail
Let's start with the obvious root parallels
I had already suspected this before, but these parallels make it obvious that White Lady's cocoon was in fact once her body, or part of it; you can clearly see the roots forming the floor, and which ones are not dry
Although Greyroot's case is unclear if it's a reflection of an older form, or just a crude mimicry
And mimicry is the name of the game for Greyroot, for the sake of her parasitic lifecycle
Clothes and a table and "stock" made out of grass and leaf, pots made out of shellwood shells, clearly mimicking a bug's home without actually being one
I wonder if the hanging leaf stocks are actually the roots leeching off of those leafs
and is that "lantern" glowing with soul?
Greyroot is actively consuming shellwood, with grey flakes of dead matter drifting out from where she grows
In the way she chokes the wood, she reminds me of strangler figs (and I've made fanart of the White Lady in this manner too), although parasitic plants do be like that in general
In the context of parasitizing bugs, the cursed state reminds me of horsehair worms, which drive bugs into drowning themselves
She extends quite far, creeping up to Bellhart's base and likely around it up to Bilewater
The clever root creeps and coils around the z axis, where she can't be tracked
In Bilewater you can even see where the roots dig into the background
The White Lady talks about sensing the state of affairs through her roots, but outside the Ancient Basin roots, we don't really see any that far away (no, the Kingdom's Edge roots aren't White Lady's)
Is Shellwood also extending into Bilewater?
Well, beyond some minimal similarities (and many differences), I don't see any significant evidence (I'd be expecting at least one pine looking root) so I don't think so
Fun fact: last I checked, the twisted bud is always there, even if you haven't completed Rite of the Pollip; which is odd, because the wording around it really imply she needs the nutrients of the pollip heart to birth the bud
The way Greyroot curls reminds me of creeping vines; I wonder if White Lady is secretly worming it up underneath those clothers
Godseeker's dialogue about White Lady is quite curious
O tragedy! This majestic god evades Our attunement with such ease.
We live only to serve the gods, to seek them out. Why does she frustrate Us? How does she hide from Us? Does she diminish herself by choice?
O majestic one, We beg thee reveal thyself! Our mind is so much less without you in it…
Pale mother… We barely dare to think. The chance of meeting is too rare…. but thine resonance! Could you be one of Them?
They're aware that White Lady is a Higher Being, a Pale Being no less, but that dream dialogue implies she's something else too, something rare that they hesitate to confirm being the case
Godseeker doesn't show the same wondering and doubt about the Pale King, so this definetively isn't about Pale Beings
Pale, God, Mother, if Godseeker knows she's all these but is hesitant to a fourth, unmentioned trait, then that trait could likely be that of being a Root
Now, I don't think Greyroot is a Higher Being, not before the Twisted Child ending at least
Talking about which, some people feel that this ending is a bit too vague
Like, beyond the obvious "the bud just consumed a God and half and has likely gained the power of one"
Let's check on what the shamans have to say on the matter
Oh! Hunter, aren't you in a sorry state. You're all bound up, looking worse than when we first met!
My shell has become host to a cruel parasite. Though my natural strength keeps it from consuming me entirely, I'm much weakened by its presence.
Well, this just won't do! Pharloom's already in the snare of one fell curse, we can't have another vying to leech what life remains.
What's this… twitching inside of you? A slave within a slave! Given over your shell to grow something greater?
A parasite has made its home within me. It saps my energy, and I can not purge it with strength alone...
Grnk. Lie down and die then, for all I care. Allow that wriggling thing its chance at life.
Chapel Maid: Hold it, Old One! That intruder writhing within your shell...
Caretaker: Our ritual ain't gonna work while that cruel creature's present. We'd be tugging at its memories as much as your own.
Then free me of the affliction. Surely you have the skill?
Caretaker: Not for this! Our power's all of soul and that thing's all physical. You're gonna need more traditional tools of healing.
Chapel Maid: Hurry, Old One. The ritual can't commence while you remain host to that writhing root.
Stay back, twisted leech! Even lodged within another's shell, your ravenous nature shines clear.
You shall not defoul this chamber, nor claim my soul. Begone!
The root leeches at and seeks out soul, and this includes silk
We can see that all of Grand Mother Silk's hair has been consumed by and turned to roots
Following this, and Chapel Maid's words, one can safely conclude that the Twisted Child ending has all of Pharloom's haunted bugs be overtaken by ashen roots, hosts for the twisted child's consumption
Kind of like how GMS's attempt at thrashing against the Abyss caused void to rise up to Pharloom through her threads
I could make fanart of this hypothethical world of haunted vines (or get commissioned for it) at some point
